Call for uncaring nurses 'to leave'

The President of the Welsh Nursing Academy has called for a major cultural shift in the way nurses care for the elderly.

Lorraine Morgan, who presides over an organisation which promotes excellence, spoke out after strong criticism by MP Ann Clwyd following the death of her husband.

Ms Morgan said those who did not show care and compassion should leave and said the profession must admit its mistakes in order for lessons to be learned.

Ms Clwyd, the Cynon Valley Labour MP, described the “coldness, resentment, indifference and contempt” of some nurses who treated her late husband Owen Roberts at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.

She felt her husband, who had been treated for multiple sclerosis, had died “like a battery hen” in hospital in October.

Ms Morgan, a registered nurse with more than 40 years’ experience, spoke of her sadness and shame over the revelations.

She also wants to see nurse education and practice programmes become more relevant for caring for older people.

Her comments coincided with the publication of a “position statement” by the Welsh Nursing Academy on the care of older people with a set of recommendations designed to ensure that the elderly get better care in the NHS.

The Welsh government has acknowledged that more work has to be done to ensure that all patients receive high quality care.

Meanwhile, the University Hospital of Wales has said it would not tolerate poor care.